NPPC seeks input on traceability standards

Oct 30, 2023

U.S. pork producers tasked the National Pork Producers Council with leading an effort to update the existing swine traceability system. NPPC is asking swine producers, veterinarians, cull swine and breeding operators and show pig enthusiasts to comment on the draft standards by Oct. 27.

In 2006, U.S. swine producers voluntarily adopted animal traceability standards to strengthen the ability to track animal movements with the goal of controlling the spread of animal diseases.

“Approximately 1 million pigs are in transit every day, giving diseases plenty of opportunities to spread,” Scott Hays, president and pork producer from Missouri, said in an NPPC news release. “With the growing threat of a foreign animal disease reaching the United States, the need to address gaps in our existing traceability system is important for our farms and our industry.”

Click here to see more...

Video: 2026 T.K. Cheung Lecture in Animal Science - Dan Weary

T.K. Cheung Lecture in Animal Science: "Using science to assess and improve the welfare of dairy cattle"

Dan Weary is a Professor at the University of British Columbia. Dan did his BSc and MSc at McGill and Doctorate at Oxford before co-founding UBC’s Animal Welfare Program where he now co-directs this active research group. His research focuses on understanding the perspectives of animals and applying these insights to develop methods of assessing animal welfare and improving the lives of animals. His work has helped drive changes in practices (including the adoption of higher milk rations for calves and pain management for disbudding) and housing methods (including the adoption of social housing for pre-weaned calves). He also studies cow comfort and lameness, social interactions among cows, and interactions between cows, human handlers and technologies like automated millking systems that are increasingly used on farms. His presentation will outline key questions in cattle welfare, highlight recent UBC research addressing them, and showcase innovative methods for improving the lives of cattle and their caretakers.